"From ancient times to the present day, victory has belonged only to those who have a goal, act decisively, and have the courage to take a desperate gamble."

In the splendid halls of the Élysée Palace, President Louis Bonaparte proudly looked at the core of his subordinates in front of him, and said in a dignified and self-contained cold tone.

"For us, there are only two paths to complete victory and complete defeat - and quickly, without any hesitation. So, once the form shì is favorable, we must act resolutely and pursue it relentlessly, because the shape shì has always been ever-changing, and if we hesitate when we have the advantage, then ...... The Goddess of Victory will reward us with a hundredfold taunt! ”

Under the curious gaze of a group of people, a sneer appeared on the corner of the president's mouth.

"Yes, I have already decided, and in a few days I will settle a reckoning with the enemies of those countries, and let them know how irresistible the will of the French people is!"

His tone was cold, and he couldn't hide the complacency in any way. The plan for the coup d'état, which had been agreed upon with Charles and a limited number of his cronies, was now ready to be revealed to the other cronies, lest they be unprepared when it happened.

Sure enough, his words quickly caused a commotion among the crowd.

"That's right, I mean to replace the ridiculous clamor in parliament with bayonets, and then knock out all the opposition!" After a pause, Louis Bonaparte laughed rather lightly, "The military preparations are ready, the troops loyal to us are ready, they are sharpening their swords, ready to eliminate a single enemy of ours!" ”

Then, he sneered and continued, "Some people may think that this is a military coup, no, wrong, I am just doing my duty to eliminate the suffering of the people by a single means!" The people are tired of the inaction of the government and parliament, and what they need is action, to regain the prosperity of the country! So...... As the representative of the will of the people, as the leader of the country elected by the popular vote, I have the right to serve the people and remove the slightest obstacle to the prosperity of the country, even if it means shedding blood and sacrificing for it. ”

Then, suddenly, there was an unspeakable dead silence in the hall.

No one raised any objections, because even those who did not know it had no doubt that the president was planning to completely knock all the opposition to the ground in one drastic move.

The only concern is whether the timing is accurate and whether the conditions are ripe.

"Sir, I have no doubt about the necessity of your move, but are you financially prepared?" The Minister of Public Works, Mr. Pierre-Magny, took a breath of uneasiness, "It takes a lot of money to get this big thing done, and the government's budget has been stretched thin lately, I'm afraid ...... I'm afraid it will be difficult to support such a big operation. ”

"There are no financial problems anymore." "Because, not long ago, the Board of Directors of the Banque de France, after a meeting of the Managing Directors, formally resolved to lend us twenty-five million francs, which is sufficient to cover all the expenses of our operation," replied with a formulaic smile, to the Minister of Finance, a wealthy Jewish banker, who had long been aware of the situation. ”

Twenty-five million is good news, and it is even better to have the full support of the Banque de France.

"Oh...... That's great! After hearing this important benefit for the first time, Magni suddenly breathed a sigh of relief, obviously relieved, "As long as this preparation is done, then there is nothing to worry about!" ”

And other people who originally had some reservations also instantly relieved their hearts after hearing the news, and they never questioned it anymore.

"That's right, with the guarantee of money, we don't need to hesitate when we move the army, the officers already support us, plus there are financial incentives, it is absolutely reliable." Speaking of this, Louis Bonaparte smiled at Charles again, "Besides, the officers who did not support us have been thrown by us to the frontier and even to Africa, can they still get in our way?" ”

A few smug laughter rang out from among the attendees, and Charles smiled humbly.

"The only thing we need to worry about is the legal concerns." At this point, Louis Bonaparte turned his head to Monsieur Eugène Ruet, Minister of Justice and long-time supporter, "Although we are working for the future of this country, we are ...... I do not deny that we are attacking the legislature as provided for in our Constitution with a blatant sword and gun......"

In fact, he didn't take the constitution seriously at all, and just wanted Eugène-Rue to say something to completely dispel the concerns of others.

And the well-behaved Rue will certainly be able to understand.

"You don't have to worry, Your Excellency. There is nothing wrong with the law, because if we win, we are the ones who make the law. Eugène-Ruet replied in a very flat tone, and his answer and demeanor perfectly reflected the bearing of a Bonapartian, "Yes, as long as victory is famous, victory is law!" Isn't it just a constitution? The Emperor has already given one, and we can give France another tomorrow if we need it! In the future, we don't have to worry about any legal troubles, the will of Your Majesty is the law! ”

His impassioned slogan not only shocked everyone's spirits, but also instantly made everyone scold in their hearts, hating himself for letting him start slapping horses first.

And so many people shouted in the same way. "Yes, Your Majesty, your will is the law!"

They had already started shouting in advance.

Even Charles raised his hands and cheered with them.

The tidal cheers of "Long live the Emperor" echoed through the hall, so much so that Louis Bonaparte's face flushed with excitement.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I can understand the excitement in your hearts, because...... I'm just as excited as you are now. After a long time, Louis Bonaparte spoke again, "Yes, after many years of suffering and suffering, who can not be thrilled when he sees that he is about to come to the end?" But...... It is precisely because we have come to the last step that we must not relax, we must be energetic, there must be no more mistakes, and each and every one of you must be fully focused until the last moment. Because, only after the victory is really in hand, we are qualified to cheer! ”

Then, there was a deep emotion in his voice. "And when the time comes, I promise, as I have always promised, that those who have been with me will share with me the glory of the throne...... I will repay your loyalty with a qiē I can give! ”

"Long live the Emperor! Imperial. The tidal wave of cheers rang out again, and this time, more sincerity poured into the slogan.

"Good." Seeing that the morale of the party members was so high, Louis Bonaparte nodded with satisfaction, "Then, at the wedding of the Charles, let's celebrate the victory together!" I've already set a date, and it's the night before Charles' wedding, and I'm sure I'll catch them off guard! Then, we can celebrate at the wedding feast that a country has finally fallen completely into our hands. ”

The astonished gaze was once again focused on Charles, who had obviously not participated in the coup d'état, and was still very surprised by this date.

"I will do my best to let the dust settle on that night, Your Majesty." Charles finally stood up and bowed to Louis Bonaparte. "I am convinced that after that, no one will be able to resist your majesty."

"Well, that's good, thanks to you!" In front of everyone, Louis Bonaparte smiled and nodded, expressing his special favor for the Charles. "Only we know how much effort you put into this qiē!"

After a pause, Louis Bonaparte looked at Charles with concern, "Your sister's matter is indeed very regrettable, Charles, you are too tired these days, I can't even let you take care of my sister more, I'm really sorry!" But don't worry, as soon as the dust settles, you will get the reward you deserve. ”

At this moment, the eyes of the comrades looking at Charles suddenly took on some mockery, which made Charles secretly clench his fists.

Because the Tréville family is now back in the center of society, the news that Fran fell into the attic and was seriously injured soon spread throughout the social world, and then aroused the interest of many people, who were secretly speculating about the truth of the matter.

Basically, no one wants to believe the official statement given by the Tréville family that "Mademoiselle fell from the upper floor while painting in the attic".

In people's private conversations, there have been a number of rumors, each of which has been revealed by some well-spoken people patting their chests and revealing some inside story, which has caused a discussion that can be shocked or disgusted.

One of the most frightening of these rumors is that Monsieur Charles de Treville has been persecuting his sister in order to monopolize his inheritance, and as a result, his sister finally chooses to commit suicide by jumping off a building.

To Charles's surprise, this rumor was unexpectedly marketable, and in a short period of time, it was almost accepted as the accepted "truth" in the whispers of the social community.

-- No, in this day the French aristocracy has gone to great lengths to counteract the primogeniture system which prevails among them and the system of equal inheritance among the sons provided for in the Civil Code, which is too frequent. In addition, Charles usually has a bad reputation, so everyone really believes that he can do such a thing.

When he heard of this rumor, Charles was of course furious, but he was soon relieved - how could he expect them not to slander him in secret when he had so many enemies?

As soon as he thought of this, he was not interested in refuting rumors, because this kind of thing is that the more he refutes rumors, the more people will take it seriously, and he can only rely on time to make everything a thing of the past.

In any case, as long as he has the power in his hands, no one dares to question or accuse him to his face, and no one will be interested in 'doing justice', and those who secretly slander him can only either shrink into the corner or squeeze over to greet him.

Yes...... Just hold the power in your hands and hold it tightly in your hands......

"Your Majesty, my loyalty to you makes it impossible for me to take care of the rest." R1152